Humpback whale shocked scientists by swimming 3,000 miles with a severely injured spine

Humpback whales have one of the longest migrations of any mammal on the planet. Some species travel an astonishing 5,000 miles from where they feed to where they breed. Fin . island research station scientists watched Moon, the humpback whale, for 15 years. They usually spot her in September when she makes her annual 3,000-mile journey from the cold waters of Canada to the warm waters of Hawaii.

Hawaii is their place believes that Moon was born and she returns there every year. It’s a wonderful tradition passed down from mother to calf. In fact, the researchers were thrilled to learn that she gave birth to her own baby in 2020.

But when they spotted the Moon in September 2022 through a drone photo, they were shocked at what they saw. Moon had one Unnatural “S” in her spine from her dorsal fin all the way to her fluke.

“It was one of those ‘oh my God’ moments when we knew it was the Moon. It’s not like she has scoliosis or something that popped up out of nowhere. She was hit by something quite hard. “I have never seen anything like it in my entire research career,” said Janie Wray, CEO and lead researcher at BC Whales.

Scientists said her spine was so severely bent because she was most likely hit by a train during the migration journey. Researchers believe that without using her tail, it would completely unable to swim so far. But to their surprise, they discovered her off the coast of Maui on December 1. Somehow, despite her severe spinal injury, She went back to Hawaii.

Due to her terrible injury, she is probably in great pain, but she still manages to travel thousands of miles without being able to propel herself with her tail. She’s really just using her pectoral fins to do the breaststroke. It’s at the same time incredibly wonderful and utterly heartbreaking.

“This migration is part of their culture, their tradition. Moon was probably born in Hawaii. And she just comes back every year, because that’s what her mother taught her to do. It was passed from mother to calf. That’s probably what caused her to go all the way with her injury,” Janie said.

While she was somehow able to make the journey, she arrived emaciated and full of whale lice. She expended a considerable amount of her fat reserves during the journey, and now has There is no food source for her in tropical waters.

This heartbreaking story is a stark reminder about the devastating effects that collisions can have on whales. This is especially important to keep in mind in areas where we know whales are most likely to appear. The most important thing everyone needs to do is slow down and stay alert.

Featured pictures: YouTube